HSCT – beginning the journey

Hello again friends, following on from my post yesterday about the HSCT (for MS) trial results, while you may be surprised to know, I figure its a good time to share my own story of HSCT.

I wrote the article below in 2016, it is the first part of my HSCT journey, the second part I am unable to publish until it has been published elsewhere, legal stuff ya know? My own story but I can’t tell it until someone else has – but that’s just how it is, and the wait won’t be too long, only a few weeks – so stay tuned! 🙂

Until then, I share this article written during my HSCT journey:

Once upon a time …

Now, let me tell you a story. The story of my HSCT journey (so far unfulfilled). Sorry. This isn’t another success story, or even a tale of woe. Not quite. Well not yet. Because right now I don’t know where my story will end.

Aha. ‘There don’t seem to be many of those stories’ I hear you thinking.

Well, settle back and I’ll tell you my (so far) unfinished story. While I live in Australia, to my knowledge my story appears almost identical for many others who have delved into this treatment, and it could be the same for you.

Ohhh the dreams you will dream!

Like you I stumbled on the HSCT phenomenon. Hard to miss really, if you have a computer, or even a television set. It’s all the rage with us MS types. HSCT treatment involves chemotherapy, and apparently while chemotherapy is approved worldwide to treat certain other serious medical conditions, as well as MS in a few countries, here in Australia and in certain other countries, it simply isn’t approved for the treatment of multiple sclerosis.

Chemotherapy is serious stuff, so it’s understandable that it isn’t used ‘willy nilly’ – but you think it’s worth a shot. You tell yourself there’s no other chance of getting better. But at the same time you know there are risks. And so, you search some more.

You and I have or will read online of many people saying they have their life back after HSCT. Others say the progress of their disease has stopped. And some, in the later disease stage, have sadly seen no improvement. And there is the risk of death, it is less than 1%, but there’s no denying that it is a risk a person would have to be willing to take. It’s the old ‘will the benefits outweigh the risk’ question. And only you can make that decision.

Awaaay we go …

I began my search around six months ago, and discovered a trial for HSCT under way, close to me, but I didn’t meet one of the criteria – just one, which was enough to see that I wouldn’t be accepted. Having the treatment under trial conditions seemed the safest way to go, but like many others I wasn’t to have that option. Which meant if I wanted to have the treatment I’d be heading overseas.

So a-searching I did go, once more. And I pretty much decided on Russia. Those guys are super smart over there. They know their stuff. And they seem to have a very high success rate. So I decided that’d probably be where I’d head, if I made the final leap. Singapore was my second choice. Reputable but more expensive.

It’s not an easy decision. Chemotherapy. I’d lose my hair, and probably be awfully sick during treatment. Aside from the risks, there is a long recovery period back home. Maybe even worse, complications during treatment or after you return home.

Am I brave enough? Should I burden my husband with more than he already has to deal with? I think that is the major stumbling block. My husband shouldn’t be my carer. I think that’s an awful thing to do to anybody. Of course I could be totally fine, I could sail through chemotherapy, and be just the same as when I started, or maybe even have some sort of miraculous recovery … it’s not impossible—we know nothing is.

Decision time

I’d done all the exploration, the research, and ultimately wasted a lot of precious time that I may not have. And I did reach the angry stage. Angry that I didn’t know about HSCT years ago. The last thing any of us want is to miss a possibly genuine opportunity.

So I figured I needed to at least try this one treatment that’s had success. Not 100% success. But success for over 70% of people (in later stages) so ‘they’ seem to say. I had to try an autologous haematopoetic stem cell transplant. Didn’t I? I decided ‘yes’. For about a week.

I’m still tossing it all around. At this stage, you probably will be too.

Russia has a long wait for HSCT, and I got as far as preparing an email to send to the hospital in Russia. Haven’t sent it yet, might not need to. Nonetheless I’m all ready. I’m lucky enough to have the funds available, so it’s fair to say I’m tinkering on the proverbial brink.

Ready … steady … maybe …

So, after months of research, and a long wait for my next neurologist appointment, I was ready. I’d again studied the criteria for the local HSCT trial. Ultimately, there did seem to be a glimmer of hope for acceptance into the local trial, so I was going to try that option first.

I’d spoken to the trial team. I know my chances of being selected are slim. I know it’s an awful treatment, involving chemotherapy. I figure that for possible improvement I can handle losing my hair, I can handle the nausea and vomiting. I get that the other awful risks are real.

Despite all the well-meaning folk telling me that no neurologist would support my decision, my neurologist IS writing me a referral for the trial here.

That referral came with a proviso though. If I decide not to follow through. Hey, it’s a possibility. Another drug is about to be approved. Yes, approved. It does look promising, but ok I’m a bit sceptical. So many drugs were (or are) supposed to help. Maybe I just haven’t found my magic drug yet, or maybe it’s just about to surface. Could be?

And that is where I am. There is a slight chance of HSCT near home, or I could soon be planning to travel to Russia!

Or still here, nervous at the prospect of chemotherapy, using treatment that doesn’t seem to be effective, waiting for something that just might help. I know that sounds terribly depressing, but there are other drugs on their way, and if that is all I can comfortably do, that is where I could be. Here.

Or planning to head overseas.

No matter my final decision, I will be comfortable with it. I will have thoroughly explored all the options.

Either way, I’ll be hoping. Hope, the one decent thing all of us with MS—as well as our families and doctors—have in common.

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Thanks again, the article above was written in 2016 but it’d be interesting to know your thoughts on HSCT – would you travel overseas to have HSCT? Appreciate your comments, thank you, and the best of health to you!

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3 thoughts on “HSCT – beginning the journey”

This is interesting, It has recently been all over the news in the UK and there are trials in London where I live currently but the chemotherapy part scares me to be honest. I just don’t think I could put myself and family through it for something that may or may not work. I am really interested in following this journey and getting some honest opinions on the whole procedure. x x

Thank you kimc91, deciding whether or not to go ahead with HSCT takes quite some time so is probably more than half the battle if a person does decide to go ahead with it. Research is key … and yes, I think just the thought of chemotherapy is off putting for everyone .. thanks again for your interest